By: Melissa Fenchel
The World Health Organization released a statement on May 17 that they do not believe the Olympic Games should be moved or postponed, even though the Zika virus continues to be an increasing concern.
The World Health Organization’s chief, Dr. Margaret Chan said in her statement:
“The important point is, we have 59 countries reporting Zika infection. You don’t want to bring a standstill to the world’s movement of people for many reasons. People go to travel because of tourism or to go to travel for studies or..because of business. So what is a proper way to deal with the risk? It’s all about getting the best available evidence , share with them so that individuals or groups of people can take appropriate measures to mitigate, to reduce the risk. It’s all about risk assessment through risk management.” http://twitter.com/richard_conway/status/732548213631295488
The WHO is taking a proactive approach to mitigate the risk as much as possible before the games. They are working directly with Brazil to try to reduce the problem as much as possible before August and make sure people entering the country understand how to best protect themselves from mosquito bites.
While the biggest risk is to pregnant women, some individual Olypmic teams are taking their own measures to reduce the risk of infection for their athletes. South Korea created Mosquito repellent uniforms and the Australian team will be distributing anti-viral condoms to athletes, as the disease can be transmitted through unprotected sex.
One of the major concerns by those who want the Olympic Games moved or postponed is that the influx of people in Brazil, 500,000 expected visitors, could cause the outbreak to spread much faster. All of these travelers will be returning to their home countries, which could increase the possibility of Zika reaching new areas and affecting a much greater number of people then it would without the games.
Between February and April, 91,387 cases of Zika were registered by the government, RushHourDaily reported. The area including Rio de Janeiro, where the Olympics will be held, had more than a third of the cases reported.
The Olympics are set to take place between August 5th and August 12th. Moving the Olympics on this short of notice would be nearly impossible; however, Los Angeles would be a possible option if necessary. At no point in recent history has the Olympics been moved or postponed.
The WHO will continue to monitor the situation, but as of now the Olympics remain in Rio de Janeiro with the full support of the organization.
Featured Image via who.int